Chapter 53: So, Don’t Think About Leaving Me Part 1

For a long time, the rule in the Wizard Tower that “Wizard Apprentices were not allowed to kill each other” had not been strictly enforced.

The Old Wizard did not care about the life or death of the Wizard Apprentices. To him, they were merely inferior beings, ordinary people who had not crossed that boundary and remained in the mundane world. There was no need to value them.

Moreover, new apprentices were recruited periodically, so as long as things did not escalate openly without leaving evidence, he could not be bothered to intervene.

This time, the reason he imposed restrictions was not to protect the apprentices’ lives, but because he noticed that the number of Junior Apprentices was large, while the numbers of Mid-Level Apprentices and High-Level Apprentices were dwindling.

It could still be maintained for now, but if the trend continued, there would certainly be a shortage of manpower in the foreseeable future.

No matter how many Junior Apprentices there were, they were useless, only able to handle somewhat dangerous Magic Plants and Magic Beasts. Mid-Level and High-Level Apprentices were far more useful, so to increase their numbers, a purge began.

Originally, this plot was supposed to occur when Meieruita took the exam to advance to High-Level Apprentice, but due to Meieruita’s maneuvers, it happened ahead of schedule.

The Old Wizard did not care who was at fault; he only cared about who was capable and could handle more chores for him.

Thus, even those Wizard Apprentices on the list, as long as they survived until the end of the exam and proved their ability, he would let bygones be bygones.

Along the way, Meieruita killed two more Wizard Apprentices who tried to ambush him.

Compared to ordinary Wizard Apprentices, the veteran ones on the list were generally stronger and more confident in themselves.

Without mishaps, a large portion of them could pass the exam and advance to Mid-Level Apprentices.

Although the Old Treeman had not mentioned the consequences for surviving the exam without killing five opponents, those who knew the darkness of the Wizard Tower did not need to ask.

Ordinary apprentices had a way out, but those on the list had only two choices: pass the exam or die.

This was their only hope, so they all chose to strike proactively.

Some acted alone, while others formed temporary small groups.

“Another one walking right into our trap.” In the distance, a hoarse voice said. “This time, it’s my turn to claim the spoils.”

A small group of five Wizard Apprentices from the list gradually closed in. Except for the one with the hoarse voice at the start, the other four said nothing as they unleashed various attack Witchcrafts, all aimed at Meieruita.

Ice-element Witchcraft, water-element Witchcraft, and fire-element Witchcraft collided, reacting to produce a burst of mist.

In the eyes of this group, it was just another routine hunt. All five attack spells hit the target—even they themselves could not survive such an assault.

However, they remained cautious and stood in place without rashly approaching while the mist had yet to dissipate.

Suddenly, a fist-sized fireball flew out from the nearly dispersing mist.

“He’s still alive.” One of the Wizard Apprentices was somewhat surprised, but the Fireball Spell was merely an introductory Witchcraft that all apprentices learned. If it had been the size of a head, it might have warranted attention, but this one was only fist-sized and posed no threat to veteran Wizard Apprentices like them.

They all raised Magic Defense barriers.

And began preparing their second round of spells.

By now, the mist had fully cleared, and An Luo could clearly see the five Wizard Apprentices opposite them, each with their Magic Defense barriers erected.

An Luo: Another five fools underestimating this explosive fireball.

Just before the fireball struck the Magic Defense barriers, An Luo’s vision was shrouded in darkness.

An Luo: “……”

Again?

He had not expected Meieruita to pull off this “manual censorship for restricted scenes” trick.

How thoughtful!

Boom!

A massive explosion rang out. The fireball did not vanish upon hitting the Magic Defense barriers; instead, it detonated instantly. Rolling heat waves surged in all directions, lifting Meieruita’s shoulder-length black hair in the hot wind before it fell back down.

With one hand covering the Waterdrop Pendant and the other drawing the dagger from his waist, Meieruita calmly slit the throats of the five Wizard Apprentices who had ambushed him.

Two of them were not dead, only gravely injured. They had planned to play dead and counterattack, but Meieruita’s follow-up slash ended that.

This fully demonstrated the importance of finishing blows.

Meieruita took out his Apprentice Credential.

The patterns on his Apprentice Credential had turned dark.

As the number of kills increased, the color of the patterns deepened.

Like a normal exam, the Wizard Apprentice Exam scores were divided into pass, good, and excellent.

Evidently, the darker the pattern color, the better the score, and the greater the rewards upon passing. Achieving first place also granted certain privileges.

No need to guess—first place was firmly in Meieruita’s grasp.

In the original story, even when Meieruita’s strength was not as great as now, he had secured first. Now that he was stronger, it was a sure thing.

After moving a certain distance from the five corpses, the darkness before An Luo’s eyes finally lifted.

How did it feel to watch Meieruita play the pig to eat the tiger and slaughter his foes from a first-person perspective?

An Luo could only say: Refreshing!

Especially seeing those who attacked Meieruita dismiss the explosive fireball as a basic little one, erecting only a single Magic Defense barrier, only to be blasted sky-high with a “boom.”

The scene was just like that episode of Tom and Jerry called “The Firecracker Fiasco.”

The firecracker’s outer layers exploded one by one, Tom’s attitude shifting from fear to nonchalance, until finally, he even balanced a tiny firecracker the size of his pinky on his nose to show his disdain.

Then he got blasted into a black-faced cat.

An Luo now saw those attackers on Meieruita as Toms constantly balancing firecrackers on their noses.

Perhaps because he had not seen the corpses with his own eyes, An Luo viewed everything around him with a detached gaze, like a bystander.

He felt nothing himself, but what he did not know was that this was precisely the state Meieruita wanted him to maintain.

Next, Meieruita continued forward.

He never attacked proactively, always baiting like fishing enforcement, then “counterattacking” with a “little fireball” that sent the ambushers flying.

Near the end of the exam, the patterns on Meieruita’s Apprentice Credential had turned a deep, rich black.

“The exam is about to end.” Meieruita found a safe, concealed spot, knelt down, and released the palm-sized An Luo from the Waterdrop Pendant. Concisely, he said, “Drink the antidote.”

An Luo: “……Alright, but could you turn around?”

Though he had endured the northern public bathhouse ordeal, that did not mean he could strip naked in front of Meieruita without a care.

Meieruita frowned. “No, otherwise if enemies approach, I won’t detect them in time.”

An Luo thought it made sense.

Though still a bit conflicted, he knew he could not delay. Steel himself, he stripped off the makeshift wool-sock clothes, tilted his head back, and gulped down the antidote.

A breeze blew through, carrying the forest’s chill. An Luo shivered, and driven by both shame and cold, he hurriedly dressed.

Trying to keep a straight face, he took the underwear draped over Meieruita’s arm, ignored his burning cheeks, and quickly put it on, followed by the shirt, trousers, Wizard robe, and shoes and socks.

Meieruita knew An Luo’s skin was fair, but he had never realized just how dazzlingly white until now. Compared to his own, An Luo’s limbs and waist seemed exceptionally slender.

His gums itched. For some reason, he wanted to sink his teeth hard into An Luo’s flawless white skin, ideally leaving deep bite marks.

Would An Luo cry, like when their souls connected? What would he say?

This thought was bizarre. Meieruita frowned, finding it strange.

He did not want to hurt An Luo—merely thinking of An Luo harmed filled him with anger and discomfort. Yet why did he want to leave a wound on An Luo himself?

The muddy road and pouring rain that had lingered in his mind resurfaced, and Meieruita understood:

Perhaps… he still hated An Luo.

Though faint, this hatred persisted, making him want to bite An Luo like a beast, yet without truly tearing flesh or drawing blood—just leaving a bite mark and some pain.

His tongue slid over his teeth. As An Luo’s clothes layered on one by one, the itch in his gums did not ease; it intensified.

If through the clothes… maybe he could bite harder…

While An Luo stood on one foot to put on his sock, his shoulder was steadied, his balance instantly secured. He said thanks, finished the sock, and slipped his foot into the shoe.

In his rush, the clothes ended up a bit disheveled. A cool finger touched his chin; An Luo froze and realized Meieruita was reaching to pull out his flipped collar.

Meieruita’s fingers were cold. When they brushed An Luo’s neck, An Luo involuntarily shivered.

The collar was straightened and adjusted. Meieruita’s movements were swift and restrained—no one would guess he was currently imagining gripping An Luo’s pale, fragile neck, pinning him to the ground, and pouncing like a Vampire to bite his throat.

“Thanks…”

An Luo felt a bit awkward. He patted his sleeves and shook out his Wizard robe, about to say something when a strong force yanked his waist and back. Uncontrollably, he was pulled into Meieruita’s embrace and swiftly retreated several steps with him.

Several Ice Cones stabbed into a nearby tree trunk, emanating white frost.

Meieruita raised his arm, and a fist-sized little fireball flew out.

His face showed perfectly timed panic, but only upon close inspection could one see the cruelty flashing in those gray-green eyes.

“Heh heh heh, such deep master-servant bonds!” The ambusher laughed maliciously. Meieruita’s panic and that fist-sized fireball made him dismissive: “Then die together here.”

He raised Magic Defense with one hand while preparing another Ice Cone Technique with the other, waiting to release it after blocking the fireball.