landbeastnovel Chapter 207: A Series of Divination and Deduction
Chapter 207: A Series of Divination and Deduction
Chapter 207 A Series of Divination and Deductions
Painful Deception, a third-circle illusion spell, causes hallucinations in the target.
If one's will is not strong enough, one will constantly fall into various illusions, suffer pain and torment, be unable to distinguish between reality and illusion, and eventually suffer a mental breakdown in endless despair.
The moment the words left his mouth, the air seemed to distort slightly.
Simon Norman, Hammond's prized student, felt as if a thunderbolt had suddenly exploded in his mind.
His pupils dilated instantly, and he suddenly became disoriented.
His eyes were filled with indescribable pain and terror, and cold sweat instantly beaded on his forehead. His whole body began to tremble uncontrollably.
He saw it with his own eyes in the illusion.
He had accidentally killed his brother, and the blood splattered all over his robes. The warm touch of that blood still seemed to linger in his palm.
Immediately, countless soldiers from various corps surged forward like a tide.
A barrage of crossbow bolts rained down, a dense hail of arrows that blotted out the sky.
He hurriedly activated his protective spell, but it was as fragile as paper under the impact of the rain of arrows and shattered instantly.
The arrow pierced his body, and he died on the spot.
His family was also implicated in this "accident," and the entire family was executed and wiped out.
"Damn it—this is an illusion, it's an illusion!"
Simon snapped back to reality, panting heavily, his face deathly pale with shock, his hands gripping his staff so tightly his knuckles turned white.
His painful struggle was witnessed by everyone.
That deep-seated fear almost overflowed.
Whether it was Luke Parker or the soldiers of the Legion, a faint fear appeared in their eyes when they looked at the hooded mage casting the spell.
The hooded monk stood quietly in place, revealing only a faint, almost imperceptible smile, enjoying the heartfelt awe of the crowd.
Suddenly, a hoarse yet sharp command rang out from the other side, like a thunderclap: "Lightning Bolt!"
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man, who had been immersed in the awe of the crowd, suddenly changed his expression, waved his staff, and his figure became blurred and disappeared from the spot.
When it reappeared, it had already landed behind the group of soldiers, dozens of meters away from its original position.
No one present had time to react, and no one even saw how he moved.
Even though he teleported, no one saw any lightning bolt spell take shape.
Luke Parker and the rest of the legion looked extremely grim.
The middle-aged man's actions just now clearly indicated that he was deliberately using them as human shields.
At this moment, an elderly man with a white beard, wearing a dark red robe, walked out with a smile.
He walked with steady steps and simply clapped his hands lightly.
A round of applause rang out, and the mages who had been bewitched by the illusion were brought back to their senses.
The confusion and pain in his eyes quickly faded, and his eyes regained their clarity.
Simon straightened his robes, still shaken, and quickly bowed to the white-bearded old man, his voice trembling, "Mentor."
This white-bearded old man was none other than Hammond, the dean of the Plastic Energy Branch.
He patted the student on the shoulder.
"Go to the back."
The middle-aged hooded mage looked at Hammond, his eyes revealing deep apprehension.
Hammond burst into laughter.
"Malcolm, the war mage of the Free City, actually wasted a spell slot on a mere boastful remark?"
Malcolm stared at him coldly, his voice low and hoarse: "No one is unafraid of the spellcasting of the most powerful Evocation Mage in Sussus."
I heard of your illustrious reputation many years ago in the Free City.
Hammond's smile faded slightly, his gaze sharpening as he slowly asked, "So, you really want to get involved in the Academy's mess? That's not a wise move."
Malcolm sneered, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "It was the Susas Noble Council that personally invited me; I have no reason to refuse."
He bowed slightly, a smile on his face: "After all, your esteemed academy has already lost three deans to the attack by those treacherous rats of the Demon Cult—"
At this point, his tone became slightly more forceful.
The faces of the mages on the field turned extremely ugly.
Hammond smiled faintly and slowly placed his hand on his staff.
Malcolm squinted, his right hand instinctively reaching for the ring on his fingertip.
The atmosphere instantly became extremely heavy.
Upon seeing this, Luke Parker quickly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his massive body swaying slightly.
He quickly stepped forward, trying to smooth things over with a forced smile, his chubby face scrunched up: "Dean Hammond, you see, it's all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding."
Let's hurry up and get into the academy to discuss important matters.
Hammond gave him a deep look, his eyes indifferent, and slowly said, "You may enter the academy, but carriages are not allowed; you must walk. You may bring a maximum of four guards."
"No problem, no problem!"
Luke Parker rubbed his hands together, his face beaming with a fawning smile, and quickly agreed.
Malcolm snorted but did not object, accepting the condition.
Hammond turned around and led his student Simon and a group of on-duty mages toward the academy gate.
The gates opened, and Malcolm and his men, accompanied by four soldiers, entered the academy.
The roadside was filled with students.
Many of the formal monks and even more apprentices wore complex expressions.
As spellcasters, none of them were fools; everyone's expressions varied.
Malcolm walked among the crowd, his head slightly raised.
His expression was arrogant, and he seemed to enjoy being watched and intimidated.
As agreed, it won't be long before he officially becomes one of the deans of the top mage academy in Sussas, wielding considerable power.
If the avenues were opened even slightly, countless nobles would pour in their wealth in order to send their children to the academy.
Just as the group ventured deeper into the academy and crossed the edge of the square...
Malcolm's gaze suddenly paused.
He noticed a human spellcaster with black hair and black eyes, frowned slightly, and a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes.
Nords?
The other person was standing next to a half-elf female mage with a cold and aloof appearance.
The spellcaster, who appeared to be Nord, looked at him with a completely indifferent gaze.
He showed no reverence whatsoever, even indifference, a stark contrast to the reverence displayed by the other monks around him.
That's nothing compared to what Malcolm really cares about.
Based on his experience as a war mage.
He sensed a faint sense of crisis emanating from this seemingly ordinary Nord.
A spiritual warning?
How could an ordinary academy mage evoke such feelings in him?
That's absolutely impossible!
Malcolm narrowed his eyes instantly.
"Master, look—behind you—"
The idle chatter beside him suddenly interrupted his thoughts, bringing him back to his senses instantly.
When he looked up again, the mage who appeared to be Nord had vanished, as if he had never been there at all.
Ignoring the idle chatter around him, Malcolm became wary.
"We need to find someone and ask who that person is."
Meanwhile, Kane and Logan returned to their lodgings.
Logan frowned slightly, his cold expression gone, and said angrily, "A war mage from a free city-state did such a thing right at the academy gate."
Why didn't the deans come out together? If there were enough of them, the other side probably wouldn't dare to do this!
Kane shook his head.
"A mere third-tier mage requires the combined efforts of several deans of the academy to intimidate him. If word gets out, it will only make other forces look down on the academy."
Logan frowned, his refined face filled with resentment: "So what do we do next? We can't just stand by and watch him do whatever he wants, can we?"
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"What? What should we do?"
Kane chuckled and turned around.
Logan glared at him irritably: "Malcolm was brought in by the Council of Nobles, and the royal family directly proposed that two royal mages serve as deans."
If this continues, the three vacant dean positions in the academy will soon be filled by them.
And I understand, Headmaster Flint intends for you to be the Head of the House of Prophecy? Aren't you worried?"
Kane smiled slightly and said calmly, "The three deans, Dry Bones, Hammond, and Ling Shu, will obviously not sit idly by and allow outsiders to control the academy."
Although the deans of the Transformation and Spellcasting departments have not made a clear statement, I do not believe they will do nothing and are simply waiting for the right opportunity.
In the past, even if there were disagreements, those were matters within the academy.
Now that outside interference has involved the royal family and parliament, it is bound to provoke a backlash from within the council.
Logan snorted, his expression softening slightly, but he was still somewhat worried: "I hope it goes as you say."
Kane suddenly looked at Logan, his eyes serious, and said, "By the way, do you have detailed information on Malcolm? I need to know everything about him."
"There's usually publicly available information about a war mage; I can help you investigate."
"Thank you for your help."
Kane nodded, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.
The next morning, Logan arrived carrying a thick stack of parchment.
She went to Kane's room and placed it heavily on the table.
Kane raised an eyebrow slightly, casually flipping through the book, which was filled with Malcolm's information.
He looked up at Logan and said calmly, "You've probably seen it before, right? Can you give me a brief introduction?"
Logan nodded and began to introduce Malcolm in a clear and organized manner: "Malcolm, nationality unknown, background a mystery, was a wandering mage in his early years, with no fixed abode."
Later, he was employed by free cities and traveled to various countries.
Having participated in hundreds of battles, large and small, he is highly experienced and a typical war mage.
He didn't specialize in any particular school of magic; he was a jack-of-all-trades and master of none. However, he excelled at deadly spells used for slaughter, and his attacks were ruthless and without any moral boundaries—he was no ordinary academic mage.
Kane pondered to himself, tapping his fingers lightly on the table, his eyes deep: "War Mage, just as I thought."
These kinds of people often stop at nothing to kill.
Some cooperated with the army, relying on the strength of the large army to fight;
Some are skilled at stealth, using magic to secretly curse and launch surprise attacks;
Even worse, some are twisted and perverted, and even when their spell slots are exhausted, they will pull out a crossbow or dagger to fight in close combat, which is extremely cruel.
He looked at Logan and asked.
"Based on your understanding, which of the three vacant dean positions does he want to compete for?"
Logan answered with certainty.
"According to the Council of Nobles, they want him to be the head of the House of Prophecy."
The Prophecy Branch?
Kane's eyes flickered slightly; what a coincidence.
Looking at the information in the documents, Malcolm was described as a womanizer, a money-grubber, a cunning schemer, and insatiable.
He already had a clear judgment in his mind.
"It seems I need to do a divination."
Kane spoke slowly, a hint of solemnity in his eyes.
"Fortune telling?"
Logan, unaware that Kane had already mastered arcane divination, looked at him with suspicion.
"Kane, even if you're incredibly talented, you couldn't possibly learn a divination ritual this quickly, could you?"
Kane offered no explanation, but took a wooden die from his pocket and placed it on the table.
He used Malcolm's information as a clue.
At the same time, write down the relevant symbols of the Demon Cult, the Royal Emblem, the Susas Mage Academy, and the Noble Council on new paper as tokens.
He then looked at the dice and asked, "Did Malcolm come to the academy with malicious intent?"
After three consecutive rolls of the dice, the dice finally stopped rolling, and the numbers were 2, 3, and 5.
His brows furrowed slightly, and a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes.
Logan frowned, puzzled, and asked, "Did the divination fail?"
"Perhaps the question was not specific enough to draw an accurate conclusion."
Logan looked puzzled, and Kane didn't answer her again.
Instead, he used his immortality to restore his spirit and repeated the occupation ritual once again.
Did Malcolm come to the college for his own benefit?
The dice were rolled again, and the numbers were 6, 4, and 4.
This time, the divination was successful, and the answer was clear: it was for their own benefit.
"Looks like I guessed right."
A knowing glint flashed in Kane's eyes.
He began to analyze to himself, his voice clear: "He is just a war mage of the Free City-State, fighting only for profit. He will serve whoever offers the most benefits."
I suspect his visit to the academy was purely for money and power.
"If he could become the head of the Prophecy Division, he could use the noble council that invited him to open the back door, allowing a large number of noble children to enter the academy through improper means, and thus amass a huge fortune."
Logan frowned: "Are you sure you're not mistaken?"
The Prophecy Academy has always been an unpopular field, researching mostly ethereal divination techniques with little practical use. Would any nobleman really be willing to send their child there?
Kane said calmly, "That's precisely why it's easy to operate; nobody will pay too much attention."
When the nobles are speaking to outsiders, they only need to declare that their children are members of the Susas Mage Academy, without having to mention the specific branch.
Most of the people who came in through the back door were spoiled brats with no magical talent.
He wouldn't dedicate himself to studying magic; he's only doing it to obtain an academy membership, which conveniently allows him to profit from it later.
Logan's expression changed slightly, and his look turned ugly.
As a member of the royal family, she was well aware of the corruption and realities of the aristocracy, and she knew that Kane was telling the truth.
That's why she was even more displeased and filled with worry.
Kane paid no heed to her feelings and picked up the dice again.
He continuously replenished his mental energy using his immortality to maintain peak condition.
Meanwhile, the divination continued, with each roll of the dice a serious calculation: "Have the current deans begun to devise countermeasures?"
665, the divination is successful.
"Are the plans of all the deans aligned?"
146, Divination failed.
Is Malcolm a pawn of the royal family?
445, the divination is successful.
Did Malcolm know about the demon cult's scheme behind this?
121, the divination is negative.
As Kane rolled the dice, pondered, and calculated time and again, his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
Logan's eyes gradually filled with surprise and shock.
She had seen divination masters before and knew some basic divination knowledge.
But she had never seen anyone perform divination so frequently and continuously.
Is this guy so full of spiritual energy that he can't use it all?
Or is he simply performing a prophecy, actually using other methods to deduce the future?
Logan's expression was uncertain, his heart filled with shock and curiosity.
Kane then stopped moving.
He let out a soft sigh, a hint of weariness flashing in his eyes, but more so, a sense of understanding.
The clues are limited.
He could only be certain that Malcolm was completely unaware of the demon cult's true schemes, but his motives at the moment appeared to be nothing more than financial gain.
Now, the biggest problem is, how do we stop him?
He has no intention of giving up his position as the head of the Prophecy Division, in particular.
Kane glanced at Logan, who looked surprised and doubtful, smiled slightly, and said in a relaxed tone, "Let's call it a day. I'm a little tired."
Logan looked at him, a hint of worry flashing in his eyes, and quickly advised, "Don't overwork yourself. Even the most basic divination is very taxing on the caster's mind. You need to take care of yourself."
After saying that, she turned and left, gently closing the door behind her.
After the door closed, Kane picked up the dice again.
Thanks to his immortality, this mental exertion was not a problem for him at all.
"Most of the divinations about Malcolm are accurate, perhaps because he is a war mage, and to make it easier for employers to hire him, much of his personality, abilities, and experiences are public knowledge."
Conversely, without tokens or clues, even if the information is related to him, it is difficult to predict.
From this perspective, the abilities I now possess are more like a simulation and deduction device.
The reason why my previous divinations were 100% accurate is because no one knows me better than myself.
This ability should be more accurately described as arcane deduction rather than arcane divination.
[Check: Should the skill "Arcane Divination" be renamed "Arcane Deduction"?]
【Yes】
The skill name changed instantly.
Kane's eyes flickered slightly.
"In battles between spellcasters, intelligence is of paramount importance."
But Malcolm, for greater gain, made it public without a care in the world.
In that case, I have no choice but to take some action before the royal family makes its next move.
A war mage who can't even handle a second-tier mage will likely become a laughingstock and have no face to stay any longer.
Kane clenched his fist, the surge of power within him giving him immense confidence.
"Based on our analysis, the other side is very likely to launch an attack at the academy meeting tomorrow."
"That will be my time to step in."